Lesya Aureola
by Neuravinci
Summary: Naruto, a young boy, seeks to create an identity. However, surprises and obstacles await him on his journey. Challenges that might just break him and destroy him-or worse.
1. Scorpion in the Leaf

Chapter One

Naruto

The 9-tailed fox was attacking the village of Konohagakure. It whipped its tails back-and-forth, staring at the innocent villagers through its beady demon eyes. Evil itself lived in him, the evil that no human could ever hope to destroy. The evil that could only be bound by strong powers and seals. Bindings that would eventually break and free the demon within. The Fourth Hokage had sealed this fox into a young infant, who was the son of one of the greatest warriors in the village, Kinomuro. However, the seal the Hokage had placed had cracks, through which the power of the demon would slip and slither through. This young boy was Naruto. The boy grew up being shunned by those around him, ostracized to the outskirts out the social order.

This story initiates when Naruto is twelve years old.

"I don't understand why they all hate me" mumbled a downtrodden Naruto to himself. "I never did anything, I'm nice, I'm funny, I'm smar-well, I _can _be smart if I tried. Maybe if I….oh, it's no use, they'll never understand…." Naruto sighed. Suddenyl, his eyebrows narrowed downward, giving him a fierce and almost vulpine visage. "I will become Hokage, and everyone will respect me, and like me, and think I'm the greatest! Yea! That's what I'll do. I'll show them all!" Naruto exclaimed, jamming his tight fists into his pockets. "But until then….I just don't know what I'm going to do. I guess I'll…I'll…"

_What's that in the distance? It looks like a cloud of dust; something's coming at me really fast. What could it be?..._

The cloud dust stopped moving, settling down several feet away from Naruto. As the dust was settling to the ground, some of it floated towards Naruto.

_Sand? In the Green Leaf village?_

"Who are you?" asked a deep and sharp voice of Naruto.

"Who are _you? _And what do you want?"

"I asked you the question first. Answer me before I-"

Before the person had time to complete their sentence, Naruto was running towards him at full spped. His body appeared to be a blurred mass of orange color and texture. The stranger merely stood still, awaiting Naruto's assault.

_I'm gonna get him! Who does he think he is, coming into _my _village and asking _me _questions? Doesn't he know that I'm gonna be the next hokage!_

All of a sudden, the orange mass that was Naruto was running away from the stranger, stracthing at himself, wincing and howling in pain.

_I feel as if I'm being pricked by thousands of stingers! It feels like bees are stinging me!_

"Hey, what kind of jutsu is that?" exclaimed Naruto. Just as suddenly as the pain began, it withered away, leaving Naruto's skin feeling tingly, but no longer in stabbing pain.

"My scorpion jutsu". A thousand piercing stings. Without the poison, of course. However, I could add poison if I wanted to." The stranger smirked, clearly in love with himself and his abilities.

"Well what do you want? And who _are _you?"

"I am who I am. And what I want is not your concern."

A swirling cloud of sand began drawing up from the ground. It floated over to Naruto, gentle and graceful as can be. The swirling column slowed down half a foot in front of Naruto, and then stopped. The stranger circled around Naruto, like a vulture eyeing its prey. It walked around several times, stopping right in front of Naruto's face. The stranger honey brown eyes bored deeply into Naturo's jet black ones.

"You have a power within you, a power that must be harnessed and utilized. A power of demonic strength and origin. I am Nepa, of the Sand Village. You are Naruto."

"Hey, how do you know my name! who are you?"

"I told you I am Nepa. Do you have amnesia? I know much more about you that I believe you know even about yourself."

"That makes _no _sense. How can you know more about me that I know about me? What are you, some sort of psychic?"

_More like psychotic. This guy is _weird.

"Never mind that, we'll have more time to discuss things later. Keep me in mind, I'll be back for you."

And with that, Nepa disappeared. Only a few grains of sand signaled that the man had ever been in the vicinity. Naruto stared at the sand grains, questioning his sanity. As he watched the ground, thinking, the sand began formulating an image of a scorpion with 9 tails. Before Naruto's eyes had full time to focus, however, the image faded and the sand disappeared, carried off by a wind Naruto could barely feel.

Naruto shook his head, closing his eyes tightly.

_Must be something in the ramen. _

With that thought echoing repeatedly through his head, Naruto turned around to head back to his room.


	2. Poison

CHAPTER 2

"I have spoken to the 9-tailed fox. He looks alive and well." Spoke a man, his voice rumbling from deep within his respiratory cavity.

"Good. What have you learned?"

"Nothing much—yet. I feel something emanating from him—I am getting strong vibes. I feel—"

"In other words, you have nothing new."

"No, that is not what I meant." The man spoke sharply. "Hear me out."

"Very well then."

"I feel that his mind has a lot of potential; however, it also, through the power of the 9-tailed fox within him, blocks me out. I can't get past the defenses the 9-tailed fox's power has erected in him. There is just too much chakra, too much that I can't get through. However, I feel that I may be able to get through. I have a plan."

"I trust that you know what you are doing, Nepa. We cannot afford to lose more time—or more power. This is not a game."

"I know sir. My plan will not fail. _I _will not fail." Nepa declared vehemently.

_Little do you know that I plan to gain power over you too, _sir." Nepa thought sarcastically to himself. He chuckled at his diabolical thoughts.

"What are you laughing at?"

"Nothing, sir. Just thinking of how I will gain power and fame."

"Mmm…You may leave now.'

"Yes sir", Nepa spoke, bowing reverently. He turned an left for the door behind me. Two guards moves out of the way.

"Nepa."

"Yes?" Nepa asked, spinning around on the backs of his heels.

"I am not one to be played with. You work for me, and _only _me. I will not tolerate insubordination. And do not feel that you can overcome me. You can't."

"No sir, I know. I would never think such things."

"Good. You may leave now. And remember everything I have taught you before. Do not forget them."

"Yes, sir!"

_That boy Nepa—he's up to something, I can smell it. I'll have to keep an eye on him, just to be sure._

The man nodded to one of his guards, and the guard nodded back, turning to leave the room. As soon as he walked out the door and closed it behind him, he disappeared. His skin had chakra flowing through it, such that, when his chakra was tapped into, his skin displaced light particles, acting as a sort of invisibility cloak. Even his clothing disappeared from sight, as the chakra flowed even above the surface of his skin, cloaking his clothing and armor. He effectively had a shield of light-deflecting chakra around him.

This made him deadly to his enemies.

Nepa knew this, and sensing the guard's presence, he completed several hand signs. A scorpion appeared and slithered down his leg to the ground. It scurried away to a corner of the hall, waiting for the right moment to attack the guard.

Nepa chuckled to himself, even shaking his head at the guard's foolishness in trying to follow him.

_When will they learn? _ He chuckled again.

Nepa turned the corner of the hall and made his way to a door leading to the outside. He soon heard grunting and a struggle. After several seconds, a loud thud reached his ears.

_So the guard has been succumbed by poison. Fool._

Nepa then left the building and made his way to the woods.


	3. Hazum

CHAPTER 3

The younger man looked around. "Do you hear something?" he whispered. The older man nodded his head to signal that he did. Then he brought his index finger up to his lips, signifying that silence and stealth was now needed more than ever. The younger man looked at him with wide eyes, but followed the command.

There was rustling in the foliage and both men looked towards the sound.

Red eyes glared back at them.

The red eyes looked as if they were growing, rising higher and higher, until the men realized that the eyes belonged to a man, and he had been changing from a crouched to a standing position. White bands covered his arms. His red eyes glared menacingly. His clothing were that of a wandering warrior.

"Who are you" questioned the older man, authority lacing his voice.

"Who are _you?"_asked the warrior.

"We are from the Sound Leaf village, on a mission to meet with men of other villages. What are you doing here?"

"I, too, am on a mission."

The older man raised his eyebrows, waiting for elaboration of the warrior's response. None came.

The younger man then drew his shuriken out of his pocket.

"I wouldn't do that if I were you," the warrior declared mockingly to the younger man. "It will only bring you death." He smirked, obviously content with himself.

"What are you doing all alone in the forest?" the younger man asked the warrior.

"Enough with the questions. I have come to carry out a mission, and I will. Not. Fail. You are Shunamo, son of Sarino. Sarino, your father, murdered my father years ago. I have a debt to settle. With that, the warrior drew out his own shuriken.

"Wait!" the older man cried out. "There will be no bloodshed!"

"Shut your mouth, Mannuko, I have had enough of your political weavings. You helped Sarino destroy my father. You and your brother killed my father. You think that I will just stand around and let you go! Besides, you have something I want—a scroll. Maybe if you give it to me, I will let you go with only a few scratches and broken bones. If you don't give it to me, well, I get the scroll anyway, and well, _you _die!"

"We have no scroll! We don't even—"

The warrior raised up his hand "Save your lies for someone gullible enough to believe them."

The warrior then made some hand signs and blue sweat began pouring out from his skin. The liquid rolled down his face and neck, covering his bare chest, running down his muscled and well-veined arms. His eyes grew blazing blue in color. His hair began dripping with his blue liquid chakra. Mannuko and Shunamo raised their arms up to their eyes, the blue chakra blinding them with its luminescence.

"This will be the last light you ever see until the light of death approaches you—which will be soon."

And with that, the blue chakra column moved with agile speed, and the red of blood mixed in with its color. The chakra liquid encircled the men, covering them in its silky fluid. The fluid burned away at the men's flesh, eating away at their skin and connective tissues. Blood poured out, but by now, the chakra, being as hot as it was, caused evaporation of the blood. The mens' screams pierced the sky, sending birds shrieking from the trees, away from the agonizing sound and the smell of burning flesh.

The warrior, Hazum, chuckled to himself. Seeing that the men had dropped dead on the ground in front of him, he stopped his chakra flow, still grinning. Rummaging through the mens' backpacks, he found the scroll he was looking for. He secured it to his own pack and walked away, leaving the bodies oozing out the remainder of liquid chakra, bleeding blue onto the forest floor.

_My revenge has only begun. _


	4. Rogue

Chapter 4

_I feel so alone, so lost. The waves of life are crashing over me, engulfing me in blindness and frustration. Water is filling up my lungs, my head is pounding, my brain throbbing beneath its delicate tissue coverings. I can't breathe, weights are pressing themselves unmercifully upon my chest. Breathing is difficult. Nothing seems to be going right. _

_Am I….crazy?_

_What's wrong with me? I can't seem to get anything straight. The edges of my mind are frayed and loosening, the threads of sanity unraveling themselves to reveal the horrid psychoses lurking demonically beneath. The shadows of incurable insanity are dispersing themselves further into my mind, parasitizing even the smallest corners of my brain, lurking….waiting…..waiting for what? _

_I can't seem to get a grip on anything. It's as if everything is oiled to the point where I can't place a handle on anything. Nothing is going right. No one understands. No one can help me. I can't even help myself. _

_The pain is unbearable. Nothing physical, no blood, no sharp wound, but something intangible, incorporeal, but painful. No balm can seduce the pain to quiet down. The pain is too much internalized, too much a part of me. At least it gives me energy. that much, at least, I can thank it for. _

Ginoro sat there in the dark, musing, contemplating the events of his life. Nothing made sense anymore to him.

But there was one thing left he _could _do to save himself.

He could turn rogue.


End file.
